This invention relates to systems for breaking down and synthesizing molecules, in particular to systems employing a tunable combination of radio frequency heating and electron beam irradiation.
In one aspect, the invention relates to systems for breaking down complex organic toxins. The use of electron beam irradiation to eliminate pollutants in smoke stack emissions is well-known. However, the use of electron beams to provide all the energy required is expensive and inflexible. Pure thermal plasma approaches wherein a plasma is created by heating a waste gas to a temperature sufficient to cause break-down of the molecules of the gas have been attempted. As an example, plasma torches have been used to destroy toxic wastes. A problem with such devices is that the electrodes degrade and must be replaced after repeated use. The use of electrodeless radio frequency-generated plasmas for toxic waste destruction at atmospheric pressures is limited by plasma stability and has not been employed in the field. Furthermore, both electrode and electrodeless thermal plasma approaches require higher temperatures (up to 20,000K) than are needed for optimum processing in many situations. These methods are expensive and inefficient since all molecules, even nontoxic components of the gas, are destroyed in the process.